New British NLT record

Harry ChamasBritish freediver Harry Chamas has set a new national record of 120m depth in the No Limits freediving discipline in Kalamata, Greece.

The previous British record of 101m was set byJ im Lawless in 2010 in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt.On 18 September 2017, Harry descended on a weighted sled running along a rope to a depth of 120m, under the supervision of a safety team. The sled incorporates a scuba air cylinder and a large air bag. On reaching the target depth, the freediver inflates the air bag with air from the cylinder, which then rushes to the surface, taking the freediver with it.

Harry said: “As a coach, I believe in breaking diving down and mastering each aspect of freediving individually. This can be done by focusing on specific skills, the different stages of a dive or the mental processes that occur on a dive. I do the same with my own diving and this No Limits dive means I have experience of extreme depths before ever venturing therein the traditional disciplines. The dive itself was fantastic and I am honored to have had this moment in the depths of the ocean. I plan to spend the next few years exploring new questions about my physical and mental capabilities and reach 100+m in CWT and FI. I would like to thank everyone I have spent time with in the water. I have learned something from everyone and I thank the whole team here at Freedive Club Greece, David Tranfield and the British Freediving Association.”

Harry began freediving in Australia eight years ago and is a freediving coach. He set a national record last year in the Variable Weight freediving discipline reaching a depth of 105m (descent on weighted sled with ascent by finning or pulling on the rope to the surface).Harry’s freediving coaching site is at (www.freedivepassion.com).Harry Chamas

 

British freediver Harry Chamas has set a new National Record of 105m depth in variable weight

Harry Chamas Variable Weight National Record

Picture Credit: By Denys Rylov (Den GC) at (http://Dengc.photos)

British freediver Harry Chamas has set a new National Record of 105m depth in variable weight in Kalamata, Greece. On Friday 14 October, Harry took a weighted sled down past 100m to reach his target, before swimming all the way back to the surface. This exceeds the previous variable weight record of 80m, held by Mark Harris since 2007.

Harry started freediving in Australia seven years ago and this year became a staff instructor at the Freediving Club in Greece, which has allowed him regular access to the sea. He was head of safety at the recent AIDA World Championships held in Kalamata. However, he’s not always had access to such depths. Harry says “most of my time I have not had access to depth below 30m, but it was all I needed to learn how to put myself into deep states of relaxation and to master my technique”. He added that “visualization can be just as valuable as diving for your training. Being confident is the key”.

You may not see Harry around the competition circuit, however, as he explains that “I’ve never enjoyed competition, I don’t handle the nerves very well, and the idea of doing an official attempt did make me nervous. But each time I thought about the attempt and would get an adrenaline rush, I would use it as an opportunity to control myself and used meditation to drop my heart rate and enter a place of peace, which was fantastic training”.

“On the day of the attempt I was in a perfect place mentally and was well rested, the ocean was calm, and I was amongst friends. It didn’t take me long to get prepared, in fact I didn’t have any nerves”.

Despite poor water visibility and cold water, Harry achieved a “perfect descent” and despite having few visual references on the way back up, he says he felt “fresh as a daisy” on the surface.

Harry dedicates this national record to his Granddad who is sick in hospital at the moment. He thanks Stavros Kastrinakis, Roxane Nicholls, David Tranfield and Brian Crossland for making this dive possible.